WTS Bermuda 2018 Race Recap

Pre-Race

Woke up at 5am, got my kit & tats on, drank some black coffee, drank 16oz of water then proceeded to eat breakfast at 5:50am before heading out at 6am to the transition area.

Swim

Swim was an in-water start, and the F17-44 wave started at 7:30am (hence the lack of heart rate data for all the activities today after the swim). I tried to stay with the lead pack when they broke off, but couldn't keep up and eventually just focused on my stroke & sighting. I'm not much of a swimmer (although I know the pool swims I've done have been very deceiving in that regard) - maybe it's swimming in open water or the lack of a wall every 25 yards... In any case I just didn't want to be dead last out of the water like I usually am. All this considered, I'm honestly happy with the swim considering it's the first of the season & I've traditionally averaged 1:51s/100yd last year.

T1

300m run up to the transition area once getting out of the water. Focus here was to breathe steady and not slip on the tape that kept the carpet down. For an Olympic distance I know that transitions matter a lot - at least a lot more than they would in an Ironman - but I wasn't comfortable with rubber-banding/flying-mount so I just ran with my cycling shoes to bike-out.

**note to self: need to set aside time to practice mounting & dismounting bike while leaving shoes on bike 

Bike

Here's where this get interesting - 4x laps and I will break out what happened by laps.

- Lap 1: definitely felt slowest of the lot - mostly because I was trying to get "stabilized" with respect to heart rate/breathing after the swim/getting out of the water AS WELL AS not being familiar with the bike course (so many turns and loops) - I just wanted to take the time to remember specific landmarks leading up to Corkscrew Hill (which is supposed to be the standout of the course).

- Lap 2: great, confidence is now up, I feel like I've gotten into the rhythm of things! There's a bit of a downhill slope you could really book leading right to the base of Corkscrew Hill *cue overconfidence* - there's a blind spot/sharp right turn to go up the Hill, and there was an old man just stopped right IN THE MIDDLE of the road, in the blind spot. I swerve last minute, nearly crashing into the wall, but manage to regain my composure - yet this is the moment where I should've switched gears... and because I didn't do it then, I was trying to switch last minute with 0 momentum + cadence. Nearly fell but managed to unclip, ended up switching gears and rotating the pedals with my hands, remounted, and proceeded with the race (feeling even MORE like I need to catch up). Honestly, I don't think I wasted that much time here but when your adrenaline is in high gear every second feels so long, plus.. c'mon - who STOPS in a race?!

- Lap 3: "Alright, let's just try and pass as many people as possible" - was looking out for women but honestly I just saw a lot of HAIRY men

- Lap 4: "Okay, Ha Na - BALLS TO THE WALL, REMEMBER?! Give it EVERYTHING you got" - I started cramping slightly in my quads when I got out of the saddle going up smaller hills after Corkscrew hill on this last lap, and I knew I had to be careful here...

**Hydration/Fuel-wise: I drank 2x 26oz bottles during the entire bike segment; 1 filled with Skratch electrolytes, 1 filled with plain water. At the 30min mark I remembered to eat something so I just shoved an entire pack of Skratch Energy Chews into my mouth and chomped.

**There was a lot of cross-wind throughout the bike course.

T2

The moment I dismounted my bike I cramped HARD in BOTH quads; I've never seen my legs look like that ever... I couldn't bend my legs to walk, and was baffled that I was in a sitting position just prior to this happening! "C'mon - move! Just a step" -- I couldn't. I just stood there for what felt like forever - the officials near me asked me if I needed medical. I somehow managed to round the corner into Transition and tried to sit, but could't... so proceeded to push my bike to the side, out of the way, and lay down while drinking water + waiting for my cramps to subside. "Maybe this will be my first DNF - how am I even going to rack my bike?" Luckily I managed to get up again soon after and walked my bike to my spot.

Run

The fact that I was able to muster up a run after that debacle - I have no idea how, but just kept thanking the stars. Next up was 4x loops, and all I could feel was what the cramps had left behind. The more I reflect on this run, the more I feel like my legs were really the only thing holding me back. I carried a 12oz handheld bottle filled with electrolytes (I knew I'd be dying in the heat + humidity), and drank water at every other aid station - the longer I ran, the better my legs felt (marginally), and I tried to run as fast as I could rounding up the final half of that last lap. 

Overall considering what went down today, I'm pretty happy with the results! Especially given that this is the first race of the season, plus I was pretty injured prior to Feb, I'll take it! Was very excited to dust off the cobwebs, and I definitely did that today.